Need Help with Naps - Standish,ME

I probably shouldn't give nap advice, since my 19-month old ended up not taking a nap at all today! But, if she'd used to body contact for her naps you may be able to transition her by getting a good baby carrier (the Ergo or a sling) and letting her fall asleep that way, while you're moving around the house sweeping or washing the dishes or whatever. Then you can lay her down, carrier and all, after she's in a deep sleep. More often than not, this is the only way I can get my daughter to nap.

That's no fun! I would say she seems too young to give up a nap all together, but as others have said, maybe you just need to let her not nap for a couple of days... maybe she'll even get so tired on her own that she'll really show signs of being tired...and you'll be able to put her down easier. I try to not fight it when my daughter fights her naps- often times it means she's not tired yet, so we'll continue playing or go run an errand or something. I also agree w/ having a naptime routine. I put some soft music on, clothes the blinds, give my daughter some milk and her "snuggly". She's gotten so used to this that I can't get her to bed fast enough some days. Good luck

Hi there. Sleep training never seems to end - does it? Kids!

I would try repeating an abbreviated version of her bedtime routine before her naps. Make sure she gets at least 20 minutes of wind down/ quiet time before napping. Kids like predictability and routine. Then why don't you or her father sleep in her room WITH her until she gets used to it, and then can sleep there on her own. Put a chair in there, or a cot, and see if that will help.

She might have a fit, and cry, but if you stick with a specific routine, over a week or so, it will work. It is harder to train older babies, so know that this will not work in a day or two.

I always think to myself when training my LO - I am the adult, she is the baby, and I am winning this battle. Sleep is non-negotiable! I could never do the CIO method, so I got creative in ways to help her sleep on her own.

I have often slept on the floor of my baby's room, patting her through the crib rails until she fell asleep! I found that letting her know I was there, but that we were not leaving her room until sleep was over, worked better than letting her cry. (she has the stamina of a triathlete, and I do not)!

Your little girl also might not sleep at all the first few days, so put her to bed early, and that should help too.

I sure hope this helps, and best of luck.

sounds like the end of nap time to me. it takes a few days to adjust to it, so you can put her to bed a little earlier on cranky days, but try giving her a "quiet time" instead of nap and see if that works out .. my son was about that age when he gave his up

Hi T.,

I'm not sure of your nap routine but a good idea to have one. I would have soft music playing as you read her a few stories in bed, if need be sit with her and rub her back or hair which ever she would prefer after reading some stories. Even if she's screaming keep on rubbing her back/hair and if she tries sitting up, put her back down and say, "it's time for nap". It takes a little time (probably a half an hour) but she'll go to sleep and get her rest and you can do what you need to do around the house. Good luck. : )

Well, at her age, she knows what "NO!" means. I would simply walk in her room & firmly tell her NO. Its naptime, & she needs to rest, read her a book, let her look at a book. They start pushing our buttons early & will do it more if we let them. She just need to learn this is the way it is & stick to it, dont give in.

I disagree with Donna M. Because kids her age need about 11 1/4 hrs of sleep a night and about 2-3 hrs of naps during the day. I am not sure why your little one won't take naps in her crib/bed anymore so I don't know what to say.
However my little one is all messed up with nap and bedtime schedule and I tried everything for 2 weeks and nothing made it better. So his pedi said it is okay for them to lay awake for 1-2 hrs at a time when you are trying to get them on a schedule. I also had to use the CIO method with my son starting at 5 months old and it worked great. He is a great sleeper now too just got off schedule. So I started the first day putting him in for a nap when he seemed tired and he went right down, did the same for the 2nd nap (but he cannot nap past 3 though) then bedtime 7:30. I have to say after only 3 days his schedule is working out well. So I say use the CIO method for her naps but first try and figure out why she won't nap any where but in your arms. Let her cry, let her play eventually she will fall asleep. It takes patience on your part but it will all work out, eventually!

She sleeps 12 hrs at night? count your blessings...
probably isn't sleeping so well during day because of 12 hrs at night...i don't know...my 3 rarely slept that long in one stretch, so mostly did nap a little better during the day.. be patient, maybe it'll pass like many stages and then you wonder why you thought it was so difficult at the time..., that's how i feel now about a lot of the "issues" along the way ...I have 3 grown girls, well, I should say 2 on earth still, the other lost her life in a terrible accident at age 21. I'm only sharing this to help you put your current situation into perspective. As I look back at my girls' early years, i realize that much of what i stressed about was not important. You know the saying "Don't sweat the small stuff?"...I would add, also don't sweat even the somewhat bigger stuff. None of it is really that important. Just accept your children the way they are and the work that comes along with them as much as you can....be patient, count your blessings along the way...
good luck...you will figure it out

Hi T.,
The only thing I can suggest is that if she doesn't sleep at all during the day, put her to bed earlier at night. It might help her catch up a little bit on her sleep and make it easier for her to fall asleep at nap time. Also, I'm not sure what time you are trying to put her down for her nap, but you could also try making that earlier as well. Sometimes if they get past the time when their body is ready for sleep, it is actually much harder for them to fall asleep. We used the book Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child, by Dr. Marc Weissbluth for 4 out of our 7 children, and I would highly recommend it if you don't already have it. Good luck.